Eagles derailed by Pelham

PELHAM -- Friday night’s non-region matchup between Oak Mountain High School and Pelham had all the markings of what should have been an offensive shootout.

Pelham provided its share of the offensive fireworks. Oak Mountain, on the other hand, didn’t show up on either side of the ball.

The result? A 52-21 victory for the Panthers on their home field. 

“I thought we had a good plan, obviously we didn’t,” said Oak Mountain head coach Cris Bell. “I think that part of the problem was our kids thought we could just show up, but we can’t. That’s my fault for allowing them to think that and just a poorly coached ballgame. Coach (Tom) Causey and his staff did a heckuva job. (We) got outcoached in every way.”

The opening two series for each team was a sign of things to come. Pelham (4-2) drove the ball down the field after the opening kickoff, reaching the Oak Mountain 2-yard line, before settling for a 22-yard Greg Blue field goal.

Oak Mountain’s opening play was a perfectly thrown deep ball by quarterback Evan Smith that was dropped by a wide open Trey Allen. The next two plays produced just two yards, and the Eagles (1-4) were forced to punt. 

Pelham quickly upped the advantage to 10-0 on a 57-yard drive that ended with a 20-yard scoring run by sophomore Dylan Peterson, who was very familiar with the end zone on Friday night. 

Oak Mountain followed with a promising drive that fizzled out after two consecutive losses by Smith deep in Pelham territory.

Things never got any better for the Eagles in the first half. By halftime, Pelham led 31-0, Peterson already had three touchdowns, and the Panthers had 255 yards rushing. 

Oak Mountain came out of the locker room, however, with a bit more passion. It took the Eagles just two plays – both runs by Luke Percer – to score for the first time. Percer began the half with a 73-yard burst and then scored on a 7-yard run.

Pelham’s Brandon Sledge ended the momentum quickly. The speedy senior took the ensuing kickoff and raced 90 yards for a touchdown that built the lead to 38-7.

“Brandon Sledge’s kickoff return really balanced it back out in a hurry,” said Pelham head coach Tom Causey, whose team finished with 404 yards rushing and 445 yards in total offense.

Oak Mountain answered quickly. Smith had a 45-yard on the second play of the next series and the freshman quarterback connected on a 25-yard scoring pass to Noah Young two plays later. 

Less than two minutes were elapsed from the second half clock, and the teams had already scored three times.

The Eagles had big defensive plays on the next two Pelham series. The first was a fumble recovery by safety Dylan Hoye, and the next one was an interception by linebacker Jalen Thomas. Neither turnover was followed by an Oak Mountain score. 

Smith was tackled for a six-yard loss on fourth-and-1 at the Pelham 12-yard line to end the first drive, and the Eagles couldn’t produce a first down on the second drive. 

The Panthers eventually build that lead to 52-14 before Oak Mountain backup quarterback Eli Hackbarth ended the scoring with a 3-yard touchdown run.

Percer had 131 yards rushing on just six carries, and Smith finished with 67 yards rushing. For the most part, however, Pelham did a good job of limiting Oak Mountain’s rushing attack.

 “We see it every day in practice,” Causey said. “What they do at Oak Mountain is very similar to what we do. I think that gave our guys confidence going into the game.”

Oak Mountain needs to find a way to get some confidence back heading into next week’s Class 7A, Region 3 game at unbeaten Mountain Brook.

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